Late this past summer, I was contacted by Mr. Victor Fernandez the owner of Cigar Gallery Club in Kennesaw, GA. The company as a whole has been doing business since around 2016. As for Victor himself, he came from the music industry where his skills were in Strategic Planning, Entertainment, Studio Recording, and Project Management. He turned those skills into his successful venture in the cigar shop and lounge business. Victor has also set his sights on creating his own brand of cigars known as Notre Dame Cigars which launched with a few blends and multiple vitolas, one of which is known at the Notre Dame Gargouille, which is the subject of today’s review and is the company’s house blend created in 2016.
Victor describes the Notre Dame Gargouille blend as:
- Wrapper – Mexican San Andres
- Binder – Oro Dominicano
- Filler – Ligero criollo 98, Ligero Cubano, Seco Criollo
They are expressed in 3 different vitolas, a Toro, Box Pressed Robusto, and Lancero. Each comes packaged in 20-count boxes. Today’s review will focus on the Notre Dame Gargouille Box Pressed Robusto, which I received samples of, from the company, for reviewing on Stogie press. I sampled 4 for this review. The robusto has an MSRP of $12.00/cigar.
The Notre Dame Gargouille cigars are produced at the El Hoyito factory in Tamboril, Dominican Republic.
Pre-Light Examination
The Notre Dame Gargouille Box Pressed Robusto is cloaked in a dark brown and marbled wrapper that is has a rugged veiny look to it along with some bumps and indents along the barrel. The box pressing is fairly crisp, though the cigar feels a bit light in the hand from a weight perspective. A simple cap completes the construction.
The cigar is adorned with a primary band that displays a Gargouille on the front with gold and brown accents. A green ribbon on the bottom of the band has the word “CIGARS” printed in white. The far left of the band which is displayed in the back of the cigar states Notre Dame in a bright yellow background. There is also an outer velum sleeve that extends from the bottom of the band to the foot and declares this as the Gargouille.
Running the Gargouille along the nose, I picked up light floral aroma along the barrel while the foot had a slight barnyard scent to it.
I sliced the cap just above the shoulder of the cigar with my double blade Xikar cutter and proceeded to give it some cold draw puffs that I found to be a tad looser in draw than I normally prefer while it offered notes of peppery spice and fruity tanginess. The more you puff the greater the pepper tantalizes the palate.
Using my single flame torch, I warmed the foot to an even orange glow and drew in the first mouth filling puffs of strong peppery smoke. Follow along as I burn this one to ash.
Cigar Review Notes
- Initial puffs hit with a strong peppery blast – no surprise there based on the cold draw.
- Hiding behind the pepper is an espresso note that is trying to break through
- Smoke volume is palate filling on every puff
- A light grey ash forms on top of a medium thick char line
- The barrel develops an extra level of squishiness
- The early pepper starts to recede after a half inch of burn as the espresso note breaks through
- Burn gets a tad wavy and the ash gets flaky
- Spice and dark chocolate notes evolve near the end of the first third
- Ash fell in decent chunk revealing an off centered burn cone
- Bitter notes attack the palate moving through the second third
- Burn straightens out
- Earthy notes end of second third
- Caramel aroma wafts off the foot
- Wave picks up again in the final
- Medium Plus in Strength
- Total Smoking Time was 1 hour and 25 minutes
Final Analysis
Upon the initial draws, a powerful peppery explosion hits the palate – a wholly expected introduction discernible from the cold draw. Concealed behind the robust pepper presence, an assertive espresso undertone strives to make its presence known. The initial peppery intensity gradually subsides after half an inch of burn, allowing the distinct espresso note to emerge prominently. Towards the conclusion of the first third, the flavor profile evolves, introducing a harmonious blend of spice and dark chocolate notes.
Though the dark chocolate bitterness is usually an acceptable flavor, the Notre Dame Gargouille had a less than pleasant bitter component in the second third that attacked the palate which lasted for most of the second third. until a touch of earth joined the mix.
The ash, albeit slightly off-center, falls in a substantial chunk, unveiling an irregular burn cone. Progressing into the second third, a hint of bitterness engages the palate, creating a dynamic shift in flavor. Earthy notes grace the palate towards the conclusion of the second third, adding some depth to the overall flavor profile. As the journey nears its end, a delightful caramel aroma emanates from the foot, concluding the smoking experience on a sweet and aromatic note. Unfortunately, the mid-section of the cigar just did not help the experience and made it feel unbalanced as I powered through it on each sample. the burn was decent with some waves here and there, but the ash had quite a bit of flakiness. You may want to try one for yourself as I rate this an 86.
Point Deductions: (-1) Barrel gets Squishy early in the burn; (-1) Wavy Burn; (-1) Flaky Ash; (-1) Off Centered Burn Cone; (-2) Flavor is overly bitter midway down; (1) Unbalanced flavors in the second third; (-1) Maybe Try one
